Thursday, 31 July 2008

Reiterating that it is up to the Thai government as to when troops might be withdrawn from the disputed Preah Vihear temple site claimed by both Thailand and Cambodia, Foreign Minister Tej Bunnag said Thursday the Cambodian government has "not informed Thailand officially" when it will pull out its troops from the area.

It is not necessary for the Thai government to react because the Cambodian government has not shown any sign that it would withdraw its troops from the disputed area, Mr. Tej said.

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen said in Phnom Penh on Tuesday that Cambodian troops were ready to withdraw from the 4.6-square-kilometre disputed area adjacent to the 11th century temple.

He indicated that the timing of the troop withdrawal is up to Thailand to decide, as far as when the action is taken, as it is not a problem for Cambodia.

Mr Tej said what Hun Sen had said could be his personal opinion but that "so far there is no official reaction from Cambodia."

Senior Thai officials on Thursday held a workshop at the National Security Council and one major topic of discussion was expected to focus on the agreements made by foreign ministers of the two countries on Monday in Cambodia's Siem Reap province.

Thai and Cambodian foreign ministers called for the redeployment of troops in and around the new pagoda located in the temple complex, so that a meeting of the Joint Boundary Commission could be held to continue to demarcate the border line, to clear landmines around the ancient temple, and to avoid armed confrontation.

Mr Tej said the Thai military will have to follow the government's instruction and that a troop reduction could not be made at once due to official procedures. (TNA)

There are two maneuvers that international (both short-term and long-term) observers did not see that seriously affected the results of the July 27, 2008 elections and distorted the will of the Cambodian people.

These two maneuvers took place before Voting Day and outside the polling stations. Therefore, international observers who were only present in polling stations and/or shortly (less than nine months) before Voting Day, could not see anything wrong. For them, the election looked smooth from a "technical" point of view.

I- FIRST MANEUVER: DELETION OF LEGITIMATE VOTERS' NAMES

In the second half of 2007, some 15,000 CPP-affiliated village chiefs throughout the country identified non-CPP supporters in their respective villages and submitted their names for deletion from the voter list under the pretext of "cleaning up" the voter registry for their respective communes. Since 98 percent of Cambodia's 1,621 communes are controlled by the CPP, virtually all the commune councils approved the deletion lists which were submitted by the village chiefs. Citizens whose names were to be deleted should have enquired whether they were blacklisted but had very little time to prove that they were not dead, had not become mad, or had not moved from their village as claimed by their village chief (this is a reversal of the burden of the proof). This was obviously too heavy a burden for the common villagers who had little knowledge of the complicated election procedures and what's more, were very busy in their rice fields during that period. However, CPP supporters were given relevant information and facilities in time to fill the formalities to preserve their voting rights.

Added to this was an organized confusion: it was difficult/impossible for many people, specifically non-CPP supporters, to find their polling stations which had been changed at the last minute, resulting in the fact they could not cast their ballots.

This is estimated to have resulted in a possible loss of approximately one million votes for the Opposition.

Illegitimate voters are under-aged people, non-registered citizens, migrant workers unable to return to vote in the commune where they were originally registered, and foreigners living in Cambodia. The CPP gave them the identity of "ghost voters" who are officially on the voter list but who do not exist. These "ghost voters" are deceased people, twice-registered voters and voters who have permanently moved away from the commune. The illegitimate voters were issued last-minute forged 1018 documents in order to be able to vote for the CPP. The 1018 form is a substitute ID document for those who don't have the standardized national ID Card. The illegitimate voters, who had been previously bribed by the CPP, were taken to specific venues, given the forged 1018 forms (with their real photo on them) and were thus able to vote.

In some cases, an illegitimate voter was given a 1018 form using the identity of a legitimate voter known as non-CPP supporter and sent to the polling station in the early hours. When the legitimate voter turned up, he/she found that someone else had cast the ballot in their place.

It is to be noted here that country-wide there is no recourse to find out how many 1018 forms have been fraudulently issued and used.

This is estimated to have resulted in a possible inflation of approximately one million votes for the CPP.

We invite observers to see evidence of the above cases. We have in our possession countless cases which show the real identity ofillegitimate voters as shown in their ID cards as well as the fake identity they used as shown on the 1018 forms given to them by the CPP. Both documents show the same photo of the same person.

Civil society groups recognize that a large portion of the electorate could not vote because they could not find their names at the polling stations on July 27, 2008 as a result of organized confusion. Countless legitimate voters' names have been deleted from the voter registry. At least one million citizens suspected of sympathy for the Opposition have been disenfranchised.

The Sam Rainsy Party invites all victims of political discrimination in the current election process to gather for a protest at the SRP Phnom Penh headquarters on Wednesday, July 30, 2008 at 08:00 am.

Journalists and election observers are invited to come tomorrow to interview the participants.

PHNOM PENH (AFP) — Cambodian opposition parties have filed a complaint to King Norodom Sihamoni against election officials for allegedly preventing one million people from voting in last weekend's poll.

The opposition Sam Rainsy Party, Human Rights Party, and Norodom Ranariddh Party told the king that one million registered voters were cut from the rolls by National Election Committee (NEC) officials.

"This act is an intentional mistake which is committed by election officials," the parties said in the joint letter, relased late Wednesday.

"This is a serious mistake committed by NEC officials at all levels which prevented at least one million people from voting," the letter said, asking the king to find a way for them to cast ballots before the announcement of official election results.

Prime Minister Hun Sen's ruling Cambodian People's Party has claimed a landslide victory in Sunday's election, saying it captured at least 90 of the 123 seats in parliament. Final results of the poll are expected in September.

More than six million out of 8.1 million eligible voters cast ballots in the poll.

European Union election observers have said only about 50,000 could not find their names registered when they attempted to vote.

The NEC has denied opposition allegations that voters were left off the rolls on purpose.

International monitors said earlier this week that the election was flawed and did not meet key standards, despite a more peaceful campaign and improvements in the electoral process.

The opposition parties have rejected the results of the election and demanded a re-run of the poll.

The landslide victory which the Cambodian People’s Party (CPP) appears to have secured in last Sunday’s election will enhance the Kingdom’s reputation as an up-and-coming investment destination and bodes well for future economic stability, say foreign investors and business leaders.“This election result was a best case scenario for investors,” said Douglas Clayton, the CEO of Leopard Capital, one of several private-equity funds which, in the last few months, have revealed plans to inject a total of US$500 million into the economy.The government’s fresh mandate will ensure continuity in its investment policy and at the same time put the opposition in a stronger position to perform its monitoring function, he added.Independent electoral watchdog the Committee for Free and Fair Elections (COMFREL), has preliminarily announced that the CPP won around 90 of the National Assembly’s 123 seats in the election, or 73 percent of the national vote.“A lot of local business activity has been put on hold pending the elections, and things should get back to normal now that this is out of the way,” said Clayton, whose firm has so far raised more than a tenth of the US$100 million it plans for its Cambodia-dedicated fund, Leopard Cambodia.The CPP wore its economic credentials on its sleeve during the campaign, with many voters choosing to support the party which has delivered double-digit growth figures in recent years and rising Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) levels.“Businessmen like stability and predictability, and that is what the government delivered for the past five years, which has led to good economic growth,” said Bretton Sciaroni, the chairman of Cambodia’s International Business Club.He said that the election process barely registered on investors’ horizons this year, in stark contrast to previous votes.“Investors have kept coming to Cambodia regardless of the fact that the nation was heading into an election. At most, there might have been one to two months of slowdown, which is a far cry from the six months slowdown which the nation had during previous elections.”Although international observers have said some aspects of the election failed to meet international standards, on the whole the vote has been described as “smooth,” and as having much lower levels of violence, intimidation and political interference than previous elections.“The fact that the elections were well managed and peaceful demonstrates significant progress on Cambodia’s part — definitely very encouraging for foreign investors,” said Marvin Yeo, co-founder of Frontier Investment & Development Partners.Yeo, whose firm plans to establish a US$250 million private-equity fund in Cambodia, says that there will “absolutely” be a positive reaction from investors to the government’s re-election.The Cambodia Investment Board predicted this year that FDI levels are on track to reach US$5.4 billion in 2008, while the launch of a stock exchange in December 2009 is hoped will lead local companies down a newly forged path of transparency and financial maturity.John Brinsden, vice chairman of Acleda Bank, which has set benchmarks for transparency levels in Cambodia and is widely expected to list on the stock exchange, said that the private sector had largely anticipated that the CPP would come out of the election with a workable majority.“This is important in two ways,” said Brinsden. “Firstly, our customers have been telling us that for economic growth to continue there must be stability and continuity. Secondly, and as important in its own way, is that the new government’s performance in office will be under more detailed scrutiny.”Ruling on their own will test the government’s leadership by exposing them to a much higher level of accountability, he said.He added that the election has been good for the country as a whole, and business in particular, by demonstrating to the world that despite its difficult history and still high levels of poverty Cambodia is capable of running a generally democratic and peaceful election.“This fact will dramatically change international perceptions and encourage foreign investment into Cambodia,” said Brinsden.

The Ministry of Tourism said yesterday that, despite a slight decline in tourism arrivals over the last few weeks due to seasonal rains and a border conflict with Thailand, it still expects arrivals to rise by a healthy 15 percent this year.“Due to the situation at Preah Vihear, the number of tourists entering from Thailand – especially at the border point of Poipet – is fluctuating,” said Tourism Minister Thong Khon. “However, we still have many overland arrivals from Vietnam and Laos, and air arrivals are consistent.”Tourist numbers generally decline during the nation’s July to August rainy season, he said, adding that he did not believe the upcoming Olympic Games in Beijing would negatively impact on figures, as most tourists to Cambodia are interested in culture rather than sports.Im Thon, chief of administration at the Poipet border gate, has seen a 20-30 percent drop in Thai tourists since the Preah Vihear dispute began in mid-July, though he added that most Thai tourists are only there to gamble at the town’s casinos and that Western tourists arrivals are stable.Khieu Thy, president of a tour guide’s association in Siem Reap province, noted that tourists in Siem Reap province have decreased since last year, adding that the decline is more evident among Western rather than Asian tourists.He said his fellow guides have all noticed the decline, theorizing that Western tourists are going to the Olympic Games.In 2007 Cambodia welcomed 2.1 million tourists generating around US$1 billion in revenues but this year has predicted over 2.5 million.

The National Security Council (NSC) is to meet with other agencies to follow up on agreements made at the assembly in Siem Reap on the border conflict between Thailand and Cambodia.

But no date for the talks has yet been set, according to Foreign Ministry spokesman Tharit Charungvat.

The Foreign Ministry yesterday invited 11 Bangkok-based diplomats whose countries are members of the United Nations Security Council and envoys of nine members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to a briefing on the outcome of the Siem Reap meeting last Monday between Foreign Minister Tej Bunnag and Cambodian Foreign Minister Hor Namhong.

Cambodian ambassador to Thailand Ung Sean reported the meeting's outcomes to other envoys.

The briefing was aimed at convincing Security Council members to back efforts by the two countries to resolve the border row over 4.6 sq km of overlapping territory between Kantharalak district in Si Sa Ket province and the Cambodian province of Preah Vihear.

Thailand and Cambodia agreed to reduce the number of troops in the area as a step towards a military withdrawal, to hold a meeting of the Joint Boundary Commission (JBC) to demarcate the border line, to clear landmines around Preah Vihear temple and to seek to avoid armed confrontation.

Thailand's deputy foreign minister co-chairs the JBC, together with Cambodia's Senior Minister Var Kim Hong, who is in charge of border affairs.

But there is no deputy foreign minister, and that could delay the meeting.

''There might be a problem in Thailand resuming JBC talks, as it does not have a deputy foreign minister to lead the meeting,'' Mr Tharit admitted.

Supreme commander Gen Boonsrang Niempradit said the Foreign Ministry was the key agency in solving the problem with Cambodia and the armed forces would support its efforts.

With the proclaimed success of the talks in Siem Reap, Gen Boonsrang indicated that there was no need for another meeting of the Thai-Cambodian General Border Committee, which is chaired by the respective defence ministers, in the near future.

In Cambodia, several opposition parties have rejected the results of last weekend's elections, saying the vote was rigged in favour of the ruling Cambodian People's Party.

However, a protest rally held by the opposition failed to gather many supporters... and international monitors say while there were serious problems with the conduct of the election, there was not enough evidence to discredit the CPP's landslide victory.

COCHRANE: The passion was there but not the numbers. Four opposition parties had called on all citizens who were denied the chance to vote in Sunday's national elections to come forward and make their complaints heard. Thousands were expected, but only about three hundred people arrived at the Sam Rainsy Party headquarters in central Phnom Penh. They told of how their names had been removed from voter lists, even though many had cast a ballot in last year's commune elections. Outside the headquarters, frustrations spilled over.

(SFX shouting & traffic noise)

Sam Rainsy Party leader, Mu Sochua, took up a megaphone and began berating a group of onlookers who she accused of intimidating the public.

SOCHUA: In front of the party headquarters, what do we see. We see the village chief, we see the people in plain clothes but with their walkie talkie. We recognize these people. These people are part of the military, part of the police that have been trying to intimidate, to threaten the people for too long. This is enough, this is way too much. We cannot accept this culture. This is a culture of threat, of intimidation. We are going back to a culture of the Khmer Rouge type control of the people. That is not acceptable.

COCHRANE: Whatever the reason, the poor turnout was a major blow to the opposition parties, undermining their rejection of the election results.But the concerns over the election conduct do have some merit, according to European Union election monitoring team, the largest group of international observers in Cambodia.

Martin Callanan, is the head of the EU election observers. He said the EU's overall assessment was that the election failed to meet a number of key international standards, despite a lower level of political violence than in previous years.

MARTIN: But of course you have to look at the whole campaign environment. The overwhelming dominance in the media by the ruling party we have a very detailed analysis of this. The fact that it was very difficult in some areas for opposition parties to campaign. Their activities were restricted. The fact that the CPP as the party in power controls all the local election administrations as well. They put up a lot of artificial barriers in place of opposition parties. They used the State's resources. So it was very difficult for there to be a genuinely fair competition.

COCHRANE: Callanan said that at least 57 thousand names had been wrongly removed from voters lists in an audit before the election, but said it was impossible to tell how many other names disappeared. The opposition Sam Rainsy Party says the number was as high as one million people, but there was no way to independently check that figure. The National Election Committee has downplayed the missing names, saying that any complaints about the voting lists should have been lodged before the election.

However, Martin Callanan from the EU, says the problems with the election would not be enough to change the sweeping success of the ruling Cambodian People's Party, or CPP, which won around 60 percent of the votes and around 90 of the 123 seats in Parliament.

MARTIN: For a result like that to be overturned, then there would have to be substantiated evidence produced of very large amounts of electoral malpractices. But so far the evidence that we've seen has been on a very limited scale, which doesn't to say that the evidence doesn't exist but all I can go on is what I've seen and from the evidence I've seen so far there isn't enough evidence to say that the result, on the scale it was, would have been effected materially if these anomalies hadn't taken place.

COCHRANE: It's unclear what the next move might be for the opposition parties in Cambodia. Early results suggest the Sam Rainsy Party might have won around 26 seats but the others barely registered, with FUNCINPEC on track for just two seats, the Norodom Rannaridh Party another two seats and the Human Rights Party led by Khem Sokha in line for three seats. This means that, for the first time, the ruling Cambodian People's Party, led by Prime Minister Hun Sen, will not need a coalition partner to form government. Liam Cochrane for Radio Australia, in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

Gen. Anupong (R) gesturing to Gen. Tea Banh of Cambodia during the meeting to resolve the Preah Vihear issue in Aranyaprathet on 21th July 2008.

BANGKOK,July 30 (TNA) - Thailand's Army chief Gen. Anupong Paochinda said Wednesday that Thai troops now stationed near a disputed border area around an ancient temple are awaiting Thai government instructions on withdrawing from the area disputed by this country and Cambodia.

Gen. Anupong told journalists that the adjustment of troop deployments in the area would have to be decided on by governments of the Thai and Cambodian governments.

To date Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej has not yet discussed the issue with the National Security Council or with military commanders, Gen. Anupong said.

His comments were made after Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen said in Phnom Penh on Tuesday that Cambodian troops were ready to withdraw from the 4.6-square-kilometre disputed area adjacent to Preah Vihear temple.

The International Court of Justice ruled in 1962 that the 11th century temple belongs to Cambodia. The current tensions at the area and the remaining part of the common border intensified after UNESCO early this month named the temple as a World Heritage site following an application by the Cambodian government.

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen said the troop withdrawal issue is up to Thailand to decide when to act upon, as it is not a problem for Cambodia.

Foreign ministers of the two countries held talks in Cambodia's Siem Reap Monday and agreed that both countries would adjust their troop deployments in and around the pagoda located in the temple complex.

Asked whether Thailand would be at a disadvantage following the troop adjustment, Gen. Anupong said he preferred not to discuss the issue because it was a "delicate matter". (TNA)

PHNOM PENH,Cambodia: Cambodian and international judges are making final preparations to begin the trial of the former commander of a Khmer Rouge torture center who is charged with crimes against humanity, a tribunal official said Thursday.

The trial of Kaing Guek Eav, 65, alias Duch, who headed the notorious S-21 prison and torture center, is scheduled for late September, said Helen Jarvis, a spokeswoman for the United Nations-assisted tribunal.

The trial is a key step in Cambodia's long wait for justice for atrocities committed during the Khmer Rouge rule in the late 1970s. Some 1.7 million people perished.

"To have the director of that institution on trial for crimes committed will be of enormous importance in understanding the Democratic Kampuchea regime," Jarvis said, referring to the Khmer Rouge's official name at the time.

The prison in Phnom Penh was the Khmer Rouge's largest torture facility, and has now become the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum.

Chinese women's art takes on a man's world

About 16,000 men, women and children are believed to have been held there. Only 14 are thought to have survived.

The tribunal has been set up under Cambodia's court system, which follows the French model in which case files are handled by investigating judges before being handed to other judges for the actual trial.

The five judges who will try Duch's case include three Cambodians and one Frenchman, Jean-Marc Lavergne, who took up their positions in July. A fifth judge from New Zealand, Silvia Cartwright, is to arrive in Cambodia later this week, Jarvis said.

Duch is one of five suspects being held for trial. The others are former top lieutenants of late Khmer Rouge leader Pol Pot, who died in 1998.

They are former head of state Khieu Samphan, former chief ideologist Nuon Chea, ex-Foreign Minister Ieng Sary, and his wife Ieng Thirith, who served as the Khmer Rouge social affairs minister.

PHNOM PENH,July 31 (Xinhua) -- Cambodia has established a 14-member official delegation for the Beijing Olympics scheduled to open on Aug. 8, according to the National Olympic Committee of Cambodia (NOCC) Thursday.

The delegation, headed by Tourism Minister and NOCC President Thong Khon, also includes two officials, one secretary, one team leader, two swimmers and their coach, two marathon athletes and their coach, one doctor and two youths attending the Olympic Summer Camp.

The members will leave Phnom Penh for Beijing respectively on Aug. 6 and 7.

NOCC Secretary General Mea Sarun told reporters that during the Beijing Games, Cambodia aims to enhance the athletes' skills and the country's participation level of the international games.

Cambodia first attended the Olympics in 1959, then quitted for a long time due to civil war. It resumed its participation in 1996 to attend the Atlanta Olympics and later sent delegations to the Sydney Games in 2000 and the Athens Games in 2004.

The ruling Cambodian People's Party was seeking a partner in its ruling government Wednesday, and officials said it would reach out to its old partner, the fractured royalist party Funcinpec.

CPP officials said Wednesday they would not allow some members of the royal family to join the government, but they would be amenable to adding other members of the party, as the next government faces a potential deadlock after Sunday's vote.

"I met with [Funcinpec Secretary-General] Nhiek Bunchhay yesterday, and I reported to Samdech Hun Sen, and Samdech prime minister will discuss with the party," government spokesman Khieu Kanharith said, adding that the coalition could include one party, like Funcinpec, or two.

The overture follows a unified censure of Sunday's polls by four main parties: Sam Rainsy, Human Rights, Norodom Ranariddh and Funcinpec. Analysts say the four parties can keep the government deadlocked if they refuse to be sworn in to the National Assembly within 60 days.

Keo Puth Reaksmey, president of Funcinpec and son-in-law to former king Norodom Sihanouk, and Sisowath Sirirath, second vice president of Funcinpec, would not be acceptable to such a coalition, because they protested the election results, Khieu Kanharith said.

Keo Puth Reaksmey is currently a deputy prime minister, and Sisowath Sirirath is a government adviser. Keo Puth Reaksmey could not be reached for comment Wednesday, and Sisowath Sirirath declined to comment.

Nhiek Bunchhay confirmed the negotiations took place and said Funcinpec was of two opinions.

"I think if we join the coalition, we will gain standing," he said.

But a coalition depends on a decision by Funcinpec's permanent committee, he added.

The CPP claims to have won 90 seats in this election, compared to just 51 in 1993, far more than the number needed to form a single-party government or pass important legislation on its own.

Funcinpec fell to just two seats Sunday, following 58 seats in 1993, 43 in 1998 and 26 in 2003.

Even if Funcinpec has two seats, they can join a government as a partner of CPP, said Koul Panha, executive director of the Committee for Free and Fair Elections.

"But the question is how strong Funcinpec will be in the government," he said.

Phnom Penh - Cambodia's ruling Cambodian People's Party (CPP) has ordered the leader of its coalition partner, the royalist Funcinpec Party, to stand down, but will retain the coalition structure, government spokesman Khieu Kanharith said Wednesday.

He said the CPP would form a coalition after Sunday's landslide victory, which sees the CPP take at least 90 of 123 seats - 64 more than it's nearest rival, the Sam Rainsy Party (SRP).

Funcinpec plummeted from 26 seats to just two on latest preliminary estimates, but despite the CPP dominance, axing a coalition which has existed since the first democratic elections in 1993 would potentially cause deep political instability.

'Opposition figures who want to join the government have to do so Wednesday or lose out, and we know many do,' Kanharith said. 'The CPP also orders that current Funcinpec leader Keo Puth Rasmei and his wife Princess Arun Rasmei resign and Nek Bhun Chhay take over.'

Bhun Chhay, an army general with the reputation of being a military bulldog, a love of former king Norodom Sihanouk but no royal blood, will be the first non-royal leader of Funcinpec.

After UN-organized elections in 1993, current Prime Minister Hun Sen forced the victorious Funcinpec into forming a coalition with him, but the UN then dictated that half the police force and army should be Funcinpec, as well as numerous government positions.

The CPP retains that coalition to avoid instability, and because it says it is incompatible with the opposition SRP, which snared at least 26 seats at Sunday's polls and is the second most popular party in the country. Funcinpec was expected to comply.

PHNOM PENH, July 30 (Xinhua) -- The Cambodian Supreme Court on Wednesday announced its verdict to uphold the judgment of the Appeal Court for the case of breach of trust over selling of the co-ruling Funcinpec Party's headquarters by Prince Norodom Ranariddh (pictured).

"We uphold the judgments of the Appeal Court which sentenced the prince to 18 months in jail and compensation of 150,000 U.S. dollars to the Funcinpec Party over the case breach of trust," said Khim Pon, president of the council of judges.

The prince was sentenced in absentia as he has been in overseas political exile for more than a year.

"The court is biased and has injustice," said Muth Chantha, spokesman for the prince's Norodom Ranariddh party (NRP).

Ranariddh established NRP after he was ousted from Funcinpec as president in 2006. Funcinpec then sued him for breach of trust over selling the party headquarters. The prince later left the kingdom and has stayed in Malaysia ever since.

Ranariddh intended to be a parliamentarian as NRP has won some seats at the National Assembly according to the preliminary results of Monday's polling of the general election. But Cambodian law will prevent him from doing so, because he has received sentence to serve.

Wednesday, 30 July 2008

Mu Sochua, deputy secretary- general of the opposition Sam Rainsy Party, calls out to supporters in Phnom Penh Wednesday.

Opposition leader Sam Rainsy offered money to voters who could help him prove Sunday's elections were rigged, as he led a rally at his party headquarters in the capital Wednesday.

More than 300 people gathered at the headquarters, under the watch of a large number of armed intervention, military and traffic police, who also positioned a water-cannon on Sotheros Boulevard outside the headquarters.

The Sam Rainsy Party won 26 seats in Sunday's election, according to National Election Committee preliminary figures, but he has contested the results.

Sam Rainsy said at the rally he was attempting to collect from voters proof they had used an illegal administrative form, No. 1018, for voting. He offered $50 to anyone who could prove they voted with the form, even though their names were not on the voter registry.

Opposition votes were taken by NEC "bandits," who conspired to ensure a Cambodian People's Party victory, Sam Rainsy said.

NEC Secretary-General Tep Nitha said the national election body had issued form No. 1018 a day before the election to people who were on voter registries but did not have photo identification, which is legal under election regulations.

Suth Dyna, deputy secretary-general of the Norodom Ranariddh Party, said Wednesday his party supported the Sam Rainsy Party's call for form 1018. His party was also preparing documentation to complain over election results, he said.

The four main non-ruling parties said Sunday's elections were seriously flawed with a number of voting irregularities.

Representatives from four non-ruling parties gathered at opposition headquarters Monday to reject Sunday's national election as "a sham," after the ruling Cambodian People's Party appeared to have won enough seats to form a single-party government.

Top officials of the Sam Rainsy, Human Rights, Norodom Ranariddh and Funcinpec parties signed a letter calling on "Cambodian public opinion and the international community not to recognize the results of the July 27, 2008, elections, which were manipulated and rigged by the ruling Cambodian People's Party."

There have not been five separate parties elected to the National Assembly since the 1993 Untac elections, and the joining together of four against one is unprecedented.

In 1998, the Sam Rainsy and Funcinpec parties joined together to protest election results in the wake of the 1997 coup.

That three-month crisis of government led to mass demonstrations in the capital and a brutal crackdown by government forces, where scores of demonstrators were disappeared and presumed killed.

In 2003, the government was deadlocked for 11 months, due to an alliance between Funcinpec and SRP that prevented a coalition government.

"We have already strengthened together to deny the results of the election, and also for the voters," opposition leader Sam Rainsy told a large crowd gathered at his headquarters Monday afternoon. "We need to revote across Cambodia."

"We appeal to the EU and the international community to deny the results, because there are so many irregularities during the election," Human Rights Party Presdient Kem Sokha told the same cheering crowd.

The parties "hope in the future will have an alliance together" and have the same goals, he said.

The main point for the alliance would be to send a message to the people "who love justice" to come to work together.

The four parties condemned "illegal and fraudulent practices" in Sunday's polls, including "deletion of countless legitimate voters' names and [an] artificial increase in the CPP voters to cast their ballots for the CPP."

The parties also condemned "the tricks and maneuvers of the National Election Committee, which is only a tool for the CPP to organize a sham election and present a façade of democracy."

"I'm not surprised about this information," NEC Chairman Im Sousdeytold reporters Monday. "We always see after the election Cambodian political parties doing the same thing."

Government spokesman Khieu Kanharith said Monday unofficial results now showed the CPP with 90 seats, followed by the Sam Rainsy Party with 26, Human Rights Party with three, Norodom Ranariddh with two, and Funcinpec with two.

Khieu Thai Sarakmony, a 57-year-old from Phnom Penh who joined the crowd at SRP headquarters Monday, said he supported the cooperation of the four parties for the people.

The Supreme Court ruled Wednesday to uphold a prison sentence and fine against Prince Norodom Ranariddh on charges of breach of trust, for the sale of the Funcinpec party headquarters in 2006.

Prince Ranariddh (pictured), who lives in exile, and whose self-named party appears to have one two seats in the National Aseembly, faces an 18-month prison sentence and $150,000 fine if he returns to Cambodia.

Supreme Court Judge Khem Pon said Wednesday the court was denying a request to drop the charges against the prince, upholding decisions by Phnom Penh Municipal and Appeals courts.

The Appeals Court verdict was "fully valid," Khem Pon said in the decision, which was reached by a five-judge panel after deliberations Wednesday morning.

The charges stem from the $3.6 million sale of Funcinpec's headquarters in northern Phnom Penh when Prince Ranariddh was president of the party.

Party officials say he sold the headquarters without consulting them and further claim he kept some of the profits for himself.

Prince Ranariddh has said the decision against him was made by politically biased courts.

By Reporters, VOA KhmerOriginal reports from Phnom Penh and Washington29 July 2008

The Cambodian People's Party claims to have won 90 parliamentary seats, but analysts say a functional National Assembly must be agreed to by all.

The ruling party may have won a sweeping victory Sunday, but analysts say the government could still face a political crisis.

Cambodia has adopted a system of simple majority, or 63 National Assembly seats, for the formation of a government, a number of seats the ruling Cambodian People's Party appears to have won by a wide margin.

But analysts said that even the 90 seats claimed by the CPP after Sunday's election may not avert a deadlock, as the Cambodian constitution requires all National Assembly members to swear in following an election.

If the roughly 33 elected parliamentarians from four non-ruling parties refuse to be sworn in within the next 60 days, the Cambodian government will face a post-election crisis.

"According to the constitution, the National Assembly can be created if all lawmakers participate. It is not difficult to create a government," said Chhim Phal Vorun, an expert in constitutional law. "But the question is to make a functioning National Assembly, because we have to set up a structure in which all members elected, 123, can go to work."

Once the National Assembly is functioning, it can vote to create the new government, resolving a deadlock, he said.

"But if other parties do not participate in the process, the CPP alone cannot make a functional National Assembly," he said.

Thun Saray, president of the rights group Adhoc, said Tuesday the question was now whether the four main parties with seats in government will demand another round of elections.

Opposition leader Sam Rainsy said the parties were now working together to demand another round. Without a new election, the parties will not accept the result of Sunday's polls, he said.

"The only one way to avoid a crisis is to reorganize an election throughout the country," Sam Rainsy said.

Government spokesman Khieu Kanharith said Tuesday, however, the CPP can run a government and National Assembly on its own, if the other parties refuse to have their members sworn in.

"If they aren't sworn in, they will not have parliamentary immunity," he said without elaborating. "So they are not lawmakers by law, and in 60 days the National Assembly will open the session. So each party must think for themselves, starting now, whether they want to participate or not."

Members of the four parties planned to meet Wednesday.

National Election Committee Secretary-General Tep Nitha said there was no law for a second round elections. Parties can only request a recasting of ballots in stations where they can prove irregularities.

Even if a government were to go ahead, Sam Rainsy said his party, which won as many as 27 seats Sunday, would maintain a strong opposition voice in the National Assembly.

"There is enough voice to pressure the government to do a better job," he said. "We will go to the seat and serve the interests of voters by not giving up all the results we received, even though it was fraudulent."

International monitors, observers and rights groups stopped short of calling Sunday's polls unfree or unfair this week, though at least one mission said the parliamentary election did not meet international standards.

Japan's monitoring mission supported the election as credible, while EU observers said many irregularities, including intimidation, vote-buying and unfair use of the media by the ruling party marred the election standards.

"The [Japanese] mission members witnessed no violent activities, intimidation or irregularities that may undermine the overall credibility of the election," the Japanese Embassy said in a statement. "The Mission considers that the 2008 National Assembly election has shown[n] an impression internally and externally for its democratic advancement in the Kingdom of Cambodia."

Irregularities took place ahead of and on Election Day, said Martin Callanan, chief observer of the EU Election Observation Mission. The CPP used state resources and government property to campaign and swayed voters with money and gifts, he said.

Election booths allowed the use of unauthorized identification forms, and about 50,000 voter names were omitted from registries, he told VOA Khmer.

Asked whether the elections were free and fair, Callanan said he had no role in that decision, which was up to the Cambodian people to decide.

Voters turned out in a "peaceful and orderly way" on Sunday, Callanan added in a statement. "It is disappointing that this commitment was not reflected in the overall electoral process, which fell short of a number of key international standards."

The Neutral and Impartial Committee for Free and Fair Elections in Cambodia said Tuesday the election had been "administered well and largely free of intimidation and violence."

But the election was also "marred" by a number of irregularities, including the omission of a "significant" number of voter names for registries.

In sample observations of 378 polling stations, the group said, at least a quarter of them "reported more than five cases of voters who had proper identity documents but could not find their names on the voters list."

"Since many voters who could not find their names on the list did not bother to enter the polling station, this figure likely under-represents the true scale of the problem," Nicfec said.

A US spokesman said that while their appeared to be "some irregularities," the "vast majority" of Cambodians were able to express their will.

"Of course we are concerned about the irregularities that were spoken out today by some of the parties and right now we are coordinating with the impartial and neutral observers from the embassy and from the other international observing of another country to see if can understand what those were,” US Embassy spokesman John Johnson told VOA Khmer.

"We are aware that some political parties have raised questions about the electoral process, and it appears that there were some irregularities which prevented some Cambodians from expressing their will, although the vast majority was able to do so," Johnson added in an e-mail. "There are existing mechanisms by which these parties can address their concerns and we encourage them to work within this framework. However, we remain concerned about the irregularities and are coordinating with Embassy and other neutral observers to further our understanding of them."

Mar Sophal said, chief of monitoring for the Committee for Free and Fair Elections, said around 60,000 voter names were omitted from voter registries.

National Election Committee Secretary-General Tep Nitha said 58,500 names were deleted from voter registries ahead of the elections, but that number had been exaggerated by some.

"If they say there are 2 million names missing, it could be an exaggerated number from a political party or NGOs," he said.

Ahead of the elections, Human Rights Watch had cautioned observers to monitor the elections carefully.

Cambodia had a "real history" of Election-Day problems, as well as irregularities ahead of the polls, Sophie Richardson, an advocacy director for the group based in Washington, told VOA Khmer Friday.

Ahead of the elections, monitors noted that the campaign period had seen seven murders and 56 cases of physical abuse.

The UN's rights office issued a statement Tuesday claiming it found "no credible evidence" of political motivation in the killings.

Cambodian opposition leader Sam Rainsy (left) greets supporters in Phnom Penh on July 30. About 300 supporters of Cambodia's main opposition party rallied in Phnom Penh on Wednesday to protest the results of the weekend election and to demand a re-run of the poll.

(AFP/Tang Chhin Sothy)

By Ly MenghourThe Mekong Times

The Sam Rainsy Party (SRP) yesterday claimed that at least a million opposition supporters were illegally denied their right to vote in Sunday’s election, and plans to hold a demonstration this morning against the alleged election fraud at the party’s headquarters in Phnom Penh.Around 20,000 leaflets entitled One Million Citizens Deprived of their Voting Rights were printed and distributed by the SRP yesterday. “The names of countless eligible voters have been deleted from the voter’s list. At least one million citizens suspected of sympathy for the opposition have been disenfranchised,” claimed the leaflets.Mu Sochua, SRP deputy secretary general, said that the main aim of the rally is to file a complaint against the National Election Committee (NEC) and commune and village chiefs for illegally deleting voters’ names.She added that the lawsuit brought against the NEC will be sent to the Constitutional Council of Cambodia (CCC) while the complaint against local authorities will be submitted to local courts.“People who couldn’t cast their vote because they couldn’t find their names on the list should not hesitate to come to the SRP headquarters to make a complaint against commune and village chiefs to the court as it is a criminal case,” she said.Mu Sochua added that the demonstration will also welcome voter’s who were victims of an alleged voter ID form fraud, claiming that village and commune chief had distributed 1018 voter ID forms which had allowed people to assume other voter’s identities and vote for them.More than 10,000 voters in Phnom Penh’s Beong Tompun commune were missing from voter rolls, she said. “So, the SRP is organizing this protest on their and all the others’ behalf.”NEC Secretary General Tep Nytha was not concerned by the planned complaint. “Making a complaint against the NEC is the right of [the party]. However, according to the election law, the protest over voter lists and voting registration should have been made during its initial inspection,” he said.

New Thai Foreign Minister Tej Bunnag was appointed to his post on Saturday, took his oath of office on Sunday, and was in urgent talks in Cambodia by Monday.

Bangkok is scrambling to make up for lost time, after its former foreign minister Noppadon Patttama seemed as indifferent to Thai interests as Phnom Penh was consistently focused over the disputed 11th-century Preah Vihear Hindu temple site.

In 1962, the World Court (ICJ) ruled that the temple stood on Cambodian soil, and Cambodia unilaterally filed for World Heritage List status. In May this year, Thailand agreed to that only if Cambodia’s filing excluded the disputed area around the temple.

But Noppadon and his Cabinet colleagues had apparently forgotten that access to the temple was on Thai territory. Different historical maps and border demarcations further complicated the plot.

Thai opposition critics chastised Noppadon, arguing that filing for world heritage status should have been a joint effort by both countries. Meanwhile Cambodia raised the nationalist stakes, applying for Asean and the UN Security Council to intervene, which nicely helped the governing party win last Sunday’s election with an increased majority.

Phnom Penh’s high-profile activism contrasts sharply with Bangkok’s sedate approach. Both countries had signed a memorandum of understanding in 2000, after which Cambodia let its soldiers and citizens enter the disputed area.

Earlier this month Unesco declared the area a World Heritage Site, pouring more attention on it. Thailand moved troops into the area it considers in dispute but which Cambodia interprets as its own.

Three Thai protesters got into the fray, military forces on both sides accumulated at the border, tensions soared, Thailand’s Constitutional Court annulled an earlier joint communique and Noppadon had to quit. His successor moved in swiftly, and Tej is seen as Thailand’s best hope.

The new minister is a royal adviser as a Privy Council member, after retirement as an experienced and respected career diplomat with no personal political agenda to distract him. He also happens to be chairman of the Thai-Cambodian Friendship Association.

Yet his Cambodian counterpart Hor Namhong is no pushover, has been a foreign minister for decades and is known to be a tough negotiator. On a personal level, both Hor and Tej are known to have worked alongside each other as ambassadors to France in the mid-1990s.

Earlier talks between Thai Supreme Commander Gen Boonsang Niempradit and Cambodia’s deputy premier Gen Tea Banh had already proved fruitless. The latest talks that began the week in Siem Reap started as a volatile mix of hope and anxiety.

They began on Monday morning, followed by a lull in the afternoon, then continued late into the night for a 12-hour stretch. The three major agenda items were a military pullout from the site, relocation of citizens in the area, and the disputed 4.6sq km territory itself.

By yesterday, both negotiating teams had agreed to advise their governments to “adjust” their respective troop levels from about 2,500 massed in the area. This would be done after official approval from both governments.

But fresh from an election win, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen said Thailand would need to pull its troops out first. The Thai government, already in a weakened state, said this could take weeks since the Cabinet might first have to refer it to Parliament.

Further talks would focus on border demarcation and the job of clearing landmines in the disputed area. Both sides also agreed to establish a joint task force for the larger issues.

The decades-long dispute could have been more than a storm in the proverbial teacup, as the risk of spillage and escalation can be unpredictable. A reliable gauge of political temperament is business sentiment, and traders and investors have not been alarmed.

Politically, both countries know they stand to lose if the dispute drags on and extremists on both sides are allowed free rein. After initial nationalist spasms are allowed to work themselves out and subside, diplomacy would regain the initiative.

PHNOM PENH (AFP) — About 300 supporters of Cambodia's main opposition party rallied in Phnom Penh on Wednesday to protest the results of the weekend election and to demand a re-run of the poll.

Prime Minister Hun Sen's ruling Cambodian People's Party has claimed victory in the Sunday poll, saying it captured at least 90 of the 123 seats in parliament, giving it more than a two-thirds majority.

"We cannot accept the results of the election. Please cancel the results of the election and hold a re-vote," opposition leader Sam Rainsy told the crowd gathered inside his party headquarters in the capital.

Sam Rainsy has estimated that one million out of 8.1 million registered voters were cut from the rolls, although European Union election observers have pegged that figure at 50,000.

"It is very unjust," Sam Rainsy said to the cheering crowds, adding that he will file complaints against National Election Committee (NEC) officials.

Dozens of police were deployed along the streets near Sam Rainsy Party headquarters to prevent a public demonstration. The party's deputy secretary general Mu Sochua stood at the entrance, shouting over a loudhailer that the election was "not free and unfair" and urging people to join the rally inside.

NEC secretary general Tep Nytha denied the opposition allegation that one million people had been denied a vote and said there was no law that permitted a re-run of the entire election.

"The case that one million people could not vote because their names had been disappeared from voting lists is not correct," he told AFP.

International monitors said Tuesday the election was flawed and did not meet key standards despite improvements in electoral processes.

By Andrew NettePHNOM PENH,Jul 30 (IPS) - An attempt by Cambodia’s four main opposition parties to reject the result of national elections, in which the ruling Cambodian People’s Party (CPP) was returned in a landslide, has met with little support from local and international organisations monitoring the poll. In a short statement released earlier this week, the four political parties called "on the public opinion and the international community not to recognise the results of the July 27, 2008 elections which were manipulated and rigged by the ruling CPP.'' Opposition parties argue the extent of CPP’s win reflects a campaign of intimidation, vote buying and dirty tricks orchestrated by the ruling party in the lead-up to the election. They maintain CPP’s vote was further inflated on polling day by the deletion of many legitimate names from the voting list and the issuing of fraudulent ‘1018’ forms by local authorities controlled by CPP. These forms are official documentation that voters lacking proper identification can submit to be able to vote. It is illegal under Cambodian election law for them to be handed out on polling day. However, opposition calls of foul play have received little support from local and international election monitors, including a 130-member European Union election observation mission, in Cambodia since mid-June. "I would say that on the basis of the provisional results published so far, CPP very clearly has a large majority and therefore any irregularities would have to be of a very large scale to invalidate the result," Martin Callanan, chief observer for the EU mission told the media in Phnom Penh on Tuesday. "While it is fair to say we have some evidence of irregularities these are not of such significant scale," he said. Although an official seat count has yet to be released, Cambodia’s main poll monitor, the Committee for Free and Fair Elections (COMFREL), has estimated CPP won approximately 57 percent in the weekend’s vote, giving it roughly 90 seats in the 123-member National Assembly. This is broadly in sync with CPP’s own projections released to the media earlier this week. In is also in line with the expectations of local and international commentators who were predicting the ruling party would win big in last Sunday’s election. According to COMFREL, the next largest party, the Sam Rainsy Party (SRP), secured 21 percent of the vote. The Norodom Ranarridh Party, Funcinpec and the Human Rights Party hovered under five percent each. While describing the general atmosphere in the lead-up to the poll as an improvement on previous national elections, Callanan stressed it still "fell short of a number of key international standards for democratic elections.’’ Despite improvements in transparency, he said the EU mission noted a lack of confidence in the impartiality of election administration among stakeholders, and that all aspects of the election process are dominated by the ruling CPP. Within hours of the close of polls on Sunday, opposition parties had raised what they believed where serious concerns about the validity of the process. Approximately 200 disgruntled voters who found themselves struck off the voter list had gathered throughout the day in the compound of the SRP headquarters in Phnom Penh. A SRP spokesperson said these irregularities including large numbers of people being deleted from the voter list and forged 1018 forms issued to pro-ruling party voters not on the voter roll, many of whom she said were "foreigners, not Cambodian nationals.’’ Speaking to IPS on election night, SRP’s leader Sam Rainsy claimed that the names of at least 200,000 eligible voters had been deleted from the rolls in Phnom Penh alone. SRP has since handed out fliers on the streets of the capital claiming nearly a million people across the country were disenfranchised in Sunday’s vote although no hard evidence has been proffered to support this claim. "I am aware of the comments of the opposition parties rejecting the results but I would encourage the parties to first use the complaint process established by NEC," Callanan said Tuesday. Officials at the National Election Committee (NEC), the body responsible for overseeing the country’s elections, have said the deadline for complaints about the voter list had long passed and no action would be taken on the matter. It is unclear what tactics the four opposition parties will now adopt to push their cause, although SRP has called a rally in Phnom Penh Wednesday to protest the result. "The number of names removed on the weekend was no surprise to us because this is what we found in our audit," said Puthea Hang, Executive Director of Neutral and Impartial Committee for Free and Fair Elections in Cambodia (NICFEC). NICFEC is one of several organisations involved in a June 2008 audit of the voter list, which found approximately 590,000 names had been incorrectly removed from list or 0.7 percent of the total electoral roll. "Every vote is important," said Tom Andrews, a senior advisor to the National Democratic Institute, which worked with NICFEC on the audit and on training observers placed in 378 of the country’s 1,245 polling stations. "But we need to base our conclusion on the evidence we have seen in the audit and our observers did not show what has been suggested by the opposition,’’ Andrews said. "It showed that people had been taken from the list but that the number was small and there was no clear pattern." NGOs maintain they alerted NEC months ago about these mistaken deletions but the election body refused to restore the names. "It is regretful that NEC did not take the opportunity to reinstate those names when they had the chance," said Callanan. While Callanan agreed the issuing of 1018 forms on polling day was "in clear contravention of the election law," EU observers had only "found a relatively small number of examples" of these being issued. Most groups monitoring the poll agree the elections were an improvement on the last poll in 2003. All groups welcomed the decrease in violence compared to previous polls. There is also general agreement that the technical aspects of the country’s electoral process, including the ballot and counting, are steadily improving. "NEC proved its ability to organise technically good elections with the planning and execution of the recruitment and training of election staff and other important electoral activities being timely and well conducted," the EU mission said in its preliminary statement released Tuesday. These improvements aside, monitoring groups say a long list of problems stand in the way of genuinely fair elections. Many of these have less to do with what happens on polling day or even in the official four-week campaign, than they are the result of decades of instability and the dominant role played by CPP in the country’s political life since 1979, when neighbouring Vietnamese installed them after overthrowing the Khmer Rouge. CPP almost completely dominates the electronic media, particularly TV, by far the most important source of information for Cambodians. The EU statement said this situation is "to the detriment of the other parties to a degree which was not consistent with international standards of free and fair access to the media," the EU statement said. On Jul. 10, NEC issued a warning to 13 television stations for broadcasting biased coverage of the elections. Ten of these were dominated by pro-CPP coverage, according to NEC. "Not only do people have a right to vote but they have a right to an informed choice," said Andrews. "CPP domination of the media makes this very difficult." The 2003 campaign also saw a widespread increase in the use of state resources by CPP during the campaign period, including the use of government vehicles and campaigning by government and military staff. Other problems included widespread vote buying and the interference of village chiefs, the overwhelming majority of which are pro-CPP, in NEC’s voter education activities. "I say take it as a whole, before the election and after balloting," said Andrews. "I think this (election) was a step forward on the longer road to a more vibrant and healthy democracy. But there are several steps more that need to be taken."

In Cambodia, preliminary results suggest a strong victory to Hun Sen's Cambodian People's Party in Sunday's election. But the opposition has accused the ruling party of widespread cheating, with thousands of names removed from voting lists.

COCHRANE: In the ancient Cambodian capital of Oudong, 20 kilometers outside Phnom Penh, voters search for their names on lists at a polling station. More than 8 million people registered to vote at 15 thousand polling stations across the country. Since the UN re-introduced democracy to Cambodia in 1993, Prime Minister Hun Sen and his ruling Cambodian People's Party have dominated politics from the village level to the top posts of power. In many parts of the country, election day went smoothly. But around Phnom Penh and certain other areas, there were complaints that voter lists had been changed and thousands of names left off. Ket Cheang was one of those whose name disappeared from the voting register.

CHEANG: I understand that in this election there is no fairness or justice. There are just threats and, what he calls, 'buying the heart' or bribery.

COCHRANE: Ket Cheang wasn't the only dissatisfied voter. Throughout the morning hundreds streamed into the headquarters of the opposition Sam Rainsy Party to lodge complaints and share their stories with others. Choun Sinoeun tried to vote in a Phnom Penh suburb, but her name was not on the list.

SINOEUN: I came to lobby the newspapers and all representatives to allow me to vote in this national election, that's all I want.

COCHRANE: The missing names weren't the only problem with the election. Human rights groups say at least three opposition candidates were detained the night before voting. The government also took action against a radio station aligned to the opposition, warning it against broadcasting a talk back program involving people who had their names deleted from the voting list. Later when the station started reading from Sam Rainsy's biography, it was shut down by police. Anyone tuning in on polling day, heard this: (radio static). A member of parliament for the opposition Sam Rainsy Party, Son Chhay, accused the authorities of cheating.

CHHAY: First we found that there a lot of people, a lot of voters who could not vote this morning, we believe that roughly around 20 percent, at least 20 percent, of the voters in Phnom Penh.

COCHRANE: The people who have been left off the list or haven't been able to vote today do you think it's a systematic attempt to stop Sam Rainsy Party or opposition voters?

CHHAY: Absolutely. The majority voted last year, Last year we had a commune election, they were all able to vote last year, why this year their names have been deleted this year, this is the big big question.

COCHRANE: The Cambodian People's Party, or CPP, has benefited from strong economic growth and has been further boosted by a border dispute with Thailand over the ownership of a temple in the north. The resulting wave of nationalism has seen some voters switching sides to the party that has total control over the military and police. Prime Minister Hun Sen, a former Khmer Rouge fighter who was put in power by the Vietnamese in the 80s, has built a reputation as the 'Strongman of Cambodia'. His name is linked to schools and road building projects, so many people see him as being personally responsible for Cambodia's much-needed development. A poll showed that more than 77 per cent of people think the government is going in the right direction under Hun Sen's government, and early election results appear to reflect that opinion. Even though they only need just over half the seats in parliament, the CPP were aiming to win two thirds and stamp their authority of the next five years.

Trucking firms said they were cautious about delivering goods to Mekong Delta because the rough roads damage their trucks.

Drivers said they usually drove in fear that they’d hit a big pothole caused by last years flood, but the upgrade for No. 80 is still waiting for Ministry of Transportation’s instruction.

Canal hidden dangers

An official from a domestic steel exporter, Hoang Dung, said the volume of exported construction materials to Cambodia would increase when dredging was done on Vinh Te Canal, which leads to the Tinh Bien border gate in An Giang Province.

An Giang Province has begun a VND2 billion ($119,000) dredging project in the canal.

They expect to clear it by next month so vessels over 500 tons can use the waterway.

At present only barges of 250 tons and less can use it, because there are many submerged rocks and snags.

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